AAA Brandywine Car Care Insurance Travel Center

"BEWARE!! Left our car for service 1/17/24. When my husband called three days later (once we received the estimate) to follow-up with the status, they could not find the car-- and it had been stolen!! When we arrived there to talk to someone, no one had any answers on approximately when the car was stolen; no camera information, they didn't even file a police report at the time that they discovered that it was missing!! Instead, we had to call the police to their location.... mind you, the car could have been missing for multiple days at this point!! We are seniors. My husband uses his car to earn a living!! When I asked the one lady at the kiosk 'Has this happened before? She said, "Yes..."usually " not this time of year...and typically catalytic converters!!!" Considering that no one had any information on tracking, cameras, or possibly when it was stolen, how do I not know that this kind of thing isn't an "inside" job.....? We are devastated that we have had no response from AAA and this location on the theft of our vehicle!! BEWARE!!"

"Please stay away from these people. You will probably do better buying a book on car repair and attempting to fix it yourself. A year ago my daughter took her car to AAA in Brandywine because she felt the car didn't sound right and was running differently. They charged us over $1,200 to fix her car. The next day she was coming home from school and the car over heated: the engine light came on, and the temperature warning alerted. We took the car back and AAA Brandywine informed my daughter that the overheating occurred because they didn't replace some sort of seal. They inform us that it would be another $1,200 to replace the seal. Fast forward to 12/27/2023 and my daughter takes the car back to AAA in Brandywine because the AC is not working. They charged us $200.00 for a diagnostic. Then inform us that the AC condenser and compressor both needed to be replaced. The AAA tech then sent us an estimate via email stating the repairs would be $1,900. Then the technician called my daughter and informed her that the cost would be $2,300.00 for the repairs, not the $1,900 in the emailed estimate. My daughter asked why there was a $400.00 difference in the emailed estimate and the verbal estimate. The AAA tech stated it was taxes. Maryland taxes are 6% not sure why AAA is allowed to charge excessively more state taxes then what is allowed by Maryland law. The AAA tech then asked her had she been in a accident. She stated she had. So the tech stated that the "accident" is what destroyed the condenser and the compressor. The tech didn't realize that what my daughter considered an "accident" was a piece of tire tread hitting her roof and her window of her car. The insurance company can confirm this. My daughter inform the Brandywine AAA tech to stand down and don't fix anything, she would come and get the car. She goes to pick the car up. And they hand her the service invoice and the declined services state the cost for the declined services was $1,700 dollars not the $1,900 in the emailed estimate or the $2,300 in the verbal estimate. I later Googled the cost for the service and the parts specifically for my daughter's car only to find that AAA seems to have 100% markup on parts. I know that you are about to say Google is not reliable but please hold you thoughts for a moment. I took the car to my sister's mechanic who is certified and owns his auto repair garage. He is very respected in her community. The diagnostic was $145.00. Yes, the compressor and condenser did need replacing. My sister's mechanic stated that the compressor and condenser had been destroyed because at some point the car had excessively overheated. I feel the excessive overheating was caused by AAA last year when the failed to correctly and completely fix the car. My sister's mechanic fixed the car for $1,200.00 which was $800.00 to $1,300.00 dollars cheaper then AAA based on which of the three AAA estimates you go with. My sister's mechanics cost were inline with Google and more traditional markup on parts (not what seemed to be the 100 percent markup by charged by AAA). Please take your car somewhere reputable and reliable. Please note I feel that the overheating was the result of the incomplete repair work they did last year which costed over $2,400.00. As such they want another $2,400.00 to fix what they broke. Buyer please beware "overpriced and incompetent. If these people are charging you anything over $200.00 please do your research and get a second estimate. I honestly wouldn't let them near a car but if you have no other choice don't take their word for anything money related or repair related. Consider yourselves warned."

"I took my truck here for brake repairs, they repaired my brakes under my 2 year 24,000 miles warranty. One month later my brakes started smoking really bad and grinding. I called the Store to speak with the Store Manager. Got placed on hold for over an half hour. I called the member relations line and spoke with Jennifer Lacy case#436, I was told that the Manager would be contacting me, that was over two months ago. My truck was feeling like it didn’t want to stop. This is very dangerous, and for AAA Club Alliance to ignore my concerns is horrendous. I spent a lot of money on my brake repairs. At this point, I just want my money back for the brake pads, rotors and calipers that I had replaced. This is awful and has been really traumatizing!"

"CONSUMER BEWARE! DO NOT TAKE YOUR AUTO TO THIS FACILITY! 0/10 DO NOT RECOMMEND! I brought my car into this location to fix a possible coolant leak (my auto was overheating). This was my first experience and they came highly recommended to me. AAA Brandywine advised me that they believed the cause of the coolant leak was due to my bypass hose which in turn will fix the overheating issue. They asked If I could leave the vehicle with them. I received a call from AAA Brandywine days later confirming that it was indeed the bypass hose and they told me I needed a new battery. After I authorized the work, Donnell emailed me the auto inspection for my vehicle, (which was performed when I initially dropped off the vehicle) and the auto inspection stated that my battery health was ok. Needless to say, they had me buy a battery I didn't need. They called me days later to pick up the auto after all the work was completed. Upon driving home (within less than 15 minute into my commute) my auto started overheat. I called AAA Brandywine back and advised them that auto was running hot still. I took the auto back to them so they can take another look. A couple of days later, they called me insisting that they couldn't get my auto to overheat. I picked up the vehicle again and upon driving home it started to overheat AGAIN. I took my auto back to AAA Brandywine a total of 3 times to rectify the issue however, they kept insisting that they couldn't get my auto to overheat. On the final attempt to allow AAA Brandy to rectify the issue with my auto and the repairs that they completed, I picked up my vehicle and the shop manager Tony came outside, while I was sitting in my car to argue with me about how they couldn't make the auto overheat and they've done all that they could do. On the way home, I recorded my temperature gauge showing that it was overheating after my attempts to rectify this with AAA Brandywine. I ended up taking my vehicle to another repair facility to fix the issue and it was the water pump the entire time. Again, this was my first experience with AAA Brandywine and sadly it cost me a lot of money for them to "fix" an issue that they DID NOT FIX and endure poor customer service. I will never go back there again and will not recommend this facility to anyone."

"I visited this location to get some tires installed that I ordered from tire rack. The location is very clean, they offer free water, coffee, and tea. alot of literature to read regarding the travel perks they offer. As a AAA member I got a discounted rate on my tire installation which was helpful! The Waiting area is kind of small, it's not apart from the representative work stations which isn't a problem. It's just minimal seats. Exactly 6. The wait was longer than I was quoted but Ithat's sort of normal going to dealership type of places So it seems everything went pretty well, except for the techs not putting foot paper down to help minimize the chances of tracking oils on the floor carpet"